A Change of Weather

Yesterday afternoon it was 57 degrees here at Frog Central. Then the tornado hit bringing along a cold front - by eleven o'clock last night, as I was going to bed it was 11 degrees and the wind was howling! I scoff at the weather reports that call for snow - they seem for the most part to always be wrong. But I'm beginning to get a bit worried about the forecasts for tomorrow. At first the reports were that we'd get about 4 inches of snow. By noon it was 6 inches. Tonights news is calling for 8 to 12 inches! It will be interesting to see what we really get. I didn't make a mad dash to Walmart to stock up on supplies. No matter what we get the temps are supposed to be back up around 60 by Monday, so any snow will not last. Pretty for a day then gone. And that's the best way to enjoy snow, in my humble opinion.

Tornado in Town

Yikes! I was working on the computer and I could hear the weather getting bad outside. Storms were definitely in the forecast. So I decided to turn off the computer in case we lost power. I no more than turned off the computer when hail started falling and the tornado sirens started wailing. I slipped on my sneakers and grabbed hold of the Frog Wrangler and made a bee line for the basement. The sirens stopped and all seemed quiet so we waited another 15 minutes or so and then made our way back upstairs. The news was blaring about a tornado that had touched down at the edge of town and tore down the power lines. A lot of wind damage is said to be around town. Thankfully, I see none here at Frog Central at the moment. What strange weather - you prepare yourself for this type of thing in the spring, summer, and occasionally fall - certainly not in the winter. Just hear another update that a number of homes had their roofs ripped off and a lot of straight line wind damage. The paper on Thursday (it's printed here in town twice a week) should have lots of info.

Afternoon with Sprogz

Sprogz - Fast Food Sprogz
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The return for one day of my favorite segment! It's been a rough day today - pushing through the back pain to get a lot of things done around the house. And today is trash day and there is a ton of trash to go to the curb. The weather here is going through a major change - 50's this morning to wet snow and 30's this afternoon!

This is indeed a rare find (hat tip to Derek). This is an artist proof of a Sprogz that did not go into production. It was made in 2001 and it is dated and signed by the sculptor, Leo Price. Although no SG number was ever assigned, it was named Fast Food Sprogz. He has his bread all spread with butter and is ready for that pesky fly on his head to land. A really nice one of a kind piece that makes a great addition to the collection.

Bearuocracy

I spent this morning at an office up in Louisville trying to get signed up for my medicare part B. After an hour of the office worker looking at screens and asking inane questions I came home with a list a mile long of documentation that I have to put together. So I'm spending the rest of the day getting all this information together - I'll be back tomorrow morning with a new frog.....

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

I had to laugh with the size and brightness of this new monitor screen. It made me realize I was over exposing The Frog Wrangler's photos. Today's photo is much better - I hope you will agree.

The Wrangler was happy to stay indoors today. The temperature outside is around 8 degrees! Things are supposed to warm up sometime early next week, I hope. All in all the Wrangler has had a pretty good week. Not quite as fiesty as the previous week, but for the most part happy and healthy. And as she moves towards her 15th birthday, that's always good news.

As you can see I've learned how to put pictures onto my computer. I spent quite a bit of time last night getting e-mail up and running. I'm sure there are still some quirks that I'll need to learn (there were no instruction booklets at all with the computer - just a quick start sheet in Chinese!). My beloved iMac was about 10 years old and I'm extremely happy with being able to see video on line. I had all but given up on viewing videos that friends either send or link to. All in all, I'm enjoying the new computer.

New Computer

I sat down this morning in front of my computer to type my excitement at seeing the cardinals return to the hibiscus hedge. It makes me feel like spring might really get here at some point. I looked up and my computer was off - strange because it was on earlier. Unfortunately I missed the death of my beloved iMac, but dead indeed it was. So in the interest of fiscal responsibility I decided to switch to a PC. I got an Acer computer. It has a really nice monitor - 19 inches. It may take me a day or two to get used to everything and to figure out how to get pictures loaded up and such. Anyhoo, it's nice to be back on-line!

Frog of the Day

Nested Frog Stoneware Plates
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

Hope you had a good long weekend. The Frog Wrangler and I decided to sit back and relax a bit - generally be lazy. With the temperatures being so cold I'm happy to curl up with a good book and a nice warm blanket. The Wrangler laid across my feet keeping them absolutely toasty. If scientist could figure out how to harness the heat she puts out we could solve the oil crisis! lol We had a bit of snow here last night and I'm glad there is no place I have to go today.

I can hardly wait - and this is a teaser - I won an auction last night for a very special Sprogz (hat tip to Derek). It's supposed to be coming by priority mail so keep watch.

This frog collectible is a really neat set. It is a set of Nested Frog Stoneware Plates. There is no manufacturer marks that I can find. The box says Made in China. A great addition to the collection. I received this set Christmas 2007.

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The Frog Wrangler has had a really good week. Almost every day she's come to me with her toys wanting to play. That's about the feistiest she's been in a while. Sometimes when the camera comes out, she runs the other way. Today she was really inquisitive and seemed quite pleased with herself when her picture popped up full screen on the computer. Such a ham!

She was not happy today when the plumbers showed up. Although he made quite a mess, I was happy he came. I was getting tired of filling buckets from the shower to flush. Thankfully, everything is working is great now. And after all the cleaning and picking up of the last two days I'm exhausted - time to take a nap.......

Plumbing woes

I'm beginning to get an idea of what our forefathers went through - and it's a pain in the behind! The toilet broke last night - the tank refusing to fill with water. So a bucket full of water is needed every time the facilities are used. Awaiting the arrival of the plumber to set things right.

With someone coming to the house I've spent the majority of today cleaning and straightening up. If nothing else, I got a clean house out of the deal! LOL

The Frog Wrangler is having a really good week and she'll be making an appearance tomorrow - Friday already? Where did this week go.......... and I still have two frogs from Christmas to put up!

Doctors!

This morning I got up extra early to get ready for a doctor's appointment at 10. I got there the requisite 15 minutes early and the nurse came and got me right away. Off to the little room to sit and wait. I think everyone there was on steroids or massive doses of caffeine this morning. The doctor came in right away and after a perfunctory exam tells me I ought to move. Huh? He thinks I should be where they have a major medical facility. Well, been there, done that. It's about the same amount of non-care no matter where you are. Guess we'll have another go round in 2 months when he wants to see me again.

Sunday Morning

I am officially sick of the political pundits! All they want to talk about is New Hampshire and how they got it wrong. So the Frog Wrangler and I turned off the television and went outside for some fresh air. It was a bit nippy, but no snow - thank goodness. That and freezing rain were in the forecast.

The horse liniment seems to have kicked in a bit. It seems to work really well at night so I can get some sleep - a very good thing indeed. Tonight I'm looking forward to watching The Amazing Race. Only two shows left. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert came back this last week without their writers. Knowing they are both big supporters and participants in improv I didn't think they'd have any problems - and indeed they didn't. Good to see them back.

I have to take some pictures of my bird - a cockatiel. I'd like to have one of those flip video cameras so that I could film her whistling. She does a pretty good job on the theme song to The Andy Griffith Show. She loves to wolf whistle, and can mimic the low battery beep of a smoke detector. In the last year or so she's taken to the commercial where the guy is smiling because of the confidence he has received from an all natural little blue pill. She loves that commercial - Enzyte, I think the product is called.

The Frog Wrangler gets very jealous of the bird - especially when the camera comes out and it's not pointed at her.

Hope you're having a good weekend - it's Sunday, sit back and relax. Monday will soon be here.......

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The Frog Wrangler has perked up and is feeling good. Of course this pic was taken this afternoon, after a morning of running around. She couldn't decide if she liked her pillow or her chair better, finally opting for the pillows. With this warmer weather she's been shedding like there's no tomorrow, so this evening I put her on the bed and gave her a thorough brushing. One of her preferred pastimes! Now if she would just let me clip those toenails......

I received my horse liniment today - I can't say that it helped but I'll try it again in the morning. My back was at its worst this morning - I can't remember when it felt this bad. And don't worry, the liniment can be used by humans too. It's just that you buy it from horse suppliers.

Mom's Avon Update

As my loyal readers know, my mom is an Avon Lady. The link to her Avon website is in the right hand column. One of the best items is on sale this week - Naturals Shower Gel. From the times I've been around when she's packing up her orders I can vouch for the fact that this is a big, big seller. Now you can get 5 of them for $9.99. Shipping is only $3. Check it out!

Frog of the Day

Norfold Lavender - Frog Hot Water Bottle
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

We had a rainy day here at Frog Central yesterday. Lots of watches and warning for tornadoes. At one point reports of 4 or 5 funnels on the ground at the same time were being reported. Thankfully nothing more than some tree branches down in the yard here. AB told me about some horse liniment that works really well - I'm waiting for mine to arrive to try on my back. This constantly being in pain is getting old. I think I better use today's frog......

This frog item is a hot water bottle. This is part of the Norfolk Lavender collection from the Old Durham Road. The packaging labels this as part of the Bathtub Pals collection. I received this Christmas 2007.

My Chair is fixed

Finally got the part in the mail today to fix my chair. So with a bit of swearing, a bunch of swings of the hammer, and, of course, a smashed finger or two - the chair is fixed. Well, sort of. The back didn't fit into the new base plate so I've had to leave it off - for now. I'll try to rework the bracket that holds the back tomorrow. Otherwise, I have a backless chair with a sturdy base; commonly called a stool! LOL It's nice to be able to sit at the computer either way. I guess I really need to invest in a couple more chairs.......

Frog of the Day

Bowling Frog
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

Hope you had a good weekend. The temperatures here at Frog Central have been fantastic - mid 60's yesterday and it's almost 70 today. A nice reprieve before returning to colder temperatures, which is supposed to happen tomorrow. The forecast for this evening is rain and my back concurs. It was a tough time getting out of bed this morning. I don't like taking the pain killers, but I'm glad they're there for days like this. On a good note, the Frog Wrangler was feeling much better yesterday, and that has continued into today. She dragged her pillow into the middle of the living room floor yesterday and plopped down - right in the midst of any and all action!

Last night was Amazing Race night - my favorite show. Very exciting! I really haven't connected with much of anybody this season as to who I want to root for. Last night I was impressed with the grandfather/grandson team and so moving into the last two weeks I guess that's who I'll pull for.

This frog collectible is called Bowling Frog. The frog is looking to throw a strike, but there are a couple extra balls in the return in case he has to go for a spare. The bowling pins are a separate piece that for reasons of the picture I had to put pretty close. The box has a Made in China stamp on it. I received this for Christmas 2007.

Friday Dog Blogging

Shadow
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

The Frog Wrangler has had a couple of tough days. She just hasn't been feeling well. She's so out of sorts during the day that by mid-afternoon she finds a spot curls up and sleeps through till morning. Yesterday she decided her favorite chair and a corner of blanket was what she needed most. Isn't that what its all about sometimes when you don't feel well - the comfort of a favorite blanket. Hopefully she'll be up and feeling better tomorrow.

Frog of the Day

Ganz - Toothpick Holder
Originally uploaded by KenCalvino

It's been a couple of interesting days here at Frog Central. I sat down New Years Day to write a blog entry and the chair tipped forward and promptly dumped me out onto the floor. Ouch! It took a while to get back to an upright position. No easy task when you walk with a walker and have a bad back The line I've fallen and I can't get up kept running through my head! LOL Then came the issue of the chair. Everyone laughs at me because I keep the paperwork and receipts for everything. I pulled out the work for the chair, figured out the part that broke and called the company to see if I could get just that part. Nope. But the chair had a 5 year warranty and I was 18 days from that time being up - but I'm getting a gift card for the full price of the chair from Office Depot. They do stand by their warranties - not like Lazy Boy. And it gets even better. I went online and found the part via eBay for 15 bucks! Now what do I need from Office Depot......

This frog collectible is from Ganz and is a toothpick holder. This is part of a larger set available from Ganz. I received this great little frog for Christmas 2007 and it will make a wonderful addition to the collection.